Jerry Jones still thinks Bruce Carter will be “outstanding”

Cowboys linebacker Bruce Carter had a disappointing season in 2013. But the man who drafted Carter, Cowboys owner and General Manager Jerry Jones, hasn’t lost any confidence in him.

Jones says Carter, whom the Cowboys selected with the 40th overall pick in the 2011 NFL draft, has all the talent they thought he had when they drafted him. Which just means that if Carter can play well consistently, he’s going to be every bit the player Jones thought he was three years ago.

“We saw things, there’s an old adage, if you’ve seen him do it a few times, you know they can do it at least and you go from there,” Jones told the Dallas Morning News. “We know he can do what this defense calls for and be outstanding. We have some real reasons to be excited about him and certainly he’d be the first to say that he had some things that he’d like to take back. Overall, he’s got a future here . . . and that’s a positive. It’s not a condition, he’s going to become more of a pro and more understanding about the kind of commitment and the kind of detail and preparation it takes and he’ll be a lot better for it. He’s got the other stuff that nobody can coach, and that is speed and physical assets.”

The Cowboys’ defense was a disaster last year. If Carter really has what it takes to be an outstanding linebacker, 2014 would be a good time to show it.

This is Jones mistake. Instead of putting players on notice he talks them up. Every year he talks about the all the talent on the team. Players walks around thinking, “Dang! I AM talented. When we lose it’s just bad luck not because of me – I’m talented.”

He should be saying, “Potential means nothing if you don’t show it on the field.” Then he should stop talking.